Don't Fall For The Latest Scam Hitting Phones Right Now in MN

One of my biggest hates in this world is scammers. And when I envision the scammer in my head, all I can see is some burnout millennial that is sitting on his nasty couch in a gross apartment. And that's the image that immediately popped up in my brain when I got a scammy text the other day. From the sounds of it, this text message is making the rounds in Minnesota.

Don't Fall For The Latest Scam Hitting Phones Right Now in Minnesota

Take a guess how many people reportedly get scammed every day in the United States? Ok...I'll tell you. Based on a report by Privacy Journal, about 7,123 people in the United States are scammed on a daily basis. That leads to a total of 2.6 million scam reports a year.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, text scams work because many people don't pause long enough after that notification rings to fully think about what the message is saying. We click or follow what it says and are part of the $330 million lost to text scams.

Lately, there are two scams that I've seen quite a bit on my phone.

SCAM #1: The first one is a bit older but pops up every now and then and says that my "USPS package has arrived at the warehouse and cannot be delivered due to incomplete address information."

Below is a screenshot of one that I got back in July.

Jessica On The Radio - TSM

I always know that this is a scam because:

someone with a gmail account sent it to me on behalf of the USPS system
a link is included to click
there is a sense of urgency to respond

SCAM #2: If you haven't already seen this text message, you probably will soon. And I know someone who fell for this too and paid money.

Reminder - PLEASE talk to your family members, especially those who are older, and inform them of this scam.

Below is a screenshot of the toll scam that is hitting phones in Minnesota:

Jessica On The Radio - TSM

I know this is a scam because:

I haven't driven through any tolls lately.
I don't think the phone number is even a US number
A link is included
There is a sense of urgency to pay

Safari must also be the place for scammers to be. That search engine was listed in both of the text messages that I got.

Reminder - PLEASE tell your family and friends about these scams

The only way you can help your loved ones stay safe is if you talk to them about these scams. Send them this story. Show them the screenshots above. Talk with them about the red flags that are in the messages.